Digital & Innovation Conference Agenda
Theme: Collaborative Transformation
This long-standing track will include sessions on how airlines and airports can leverage data, digital platforms and innovation to evolve, create new business models and reinvent operations & passenger experiences. Topics include digital transformation, AI, Robotics, digital twins, workforce optimisation, wearable technology, digital identity, private networks, accelerating energy & sustainability strategies plus game-changing inspiration on scaling innovative new approaches from within and outside of our sector. You can expect to hear from United Airlines, Los Angeles World Airports, Spirit Airlines, WebAI, Cincinnati / Northern Kentucky International Airport, British Airways, Publicis Sapient, Southwest Airlines, Schiphol, Aena, Vienna Airport, Alaska Airlines, Gerald R. Ford Airport Authority, Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority and many more.
This conference track also hosts our prestigious FTE Americas Innovate Awards pitch sessions which will be judged be senior executives from flyadeal, Munich Airport & TNW Programs.
Browse the full conference track below – or utilise the filter, to quickly, and efficiently locate sessions meeting your specific interest area(s).

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Tuesday 9th September 2025
APEX Thought Leadership Conference

If you are registered for FTE Global with a Premium Pass you will get access to the APEX Thought Leadership sessions taking place in the morning on Tuesday 9th September. PLUS all registrants for FTE Global get complimentary access to the APEX/IFSA Global EXPO exhibition hall and education stages.
Learn more about the benefits of this incredible co-location effort and how the co-location works in practice for participants at both shows, here >>


Mesfin Tasew
Group Chief Executive Officer
Ethiopian Airlines


Dina Ben Tal Ganancia
Chief Executive Officer
EL AL Israel Airlines


Campbell Wilson
Chief Executive Officer
Air India


David Neeleman
Founder and Chief Executive Officer
Breeze Airways
More speakers to be announced soon
Lunch
FTE APEX IFSA EXPO Opens, VIP Tours & Showcases
FTE Baggage Innovation Working Group meeting

The FTE Baggage Innovation Working Group (BIWG) brings together the most innovative and progressive baggage supply chain companies, airlines, and airports from across the industry to provide a unique platform for cooperation and industry advancement. It is the platform for game-changing proof of concepts (POCs) & developing new techniques, technologies, and business models to deliver tangible change in the baggage sector.
Please contact us for more information Airlines can join the FTE BIWG for free
The FTE Sprint Sessions

We will crowdsource problem statements for our sector, and in our Sprint Sessions taking place in a dedicated zone on the show floor, attendees with an interest in the topic can gather and participate in one of the three 20-minute Sprint Sessions to quickly brainstorm, and suggest potential solutions or approaches, that could address the challenge. The output will be shared with all attendees, and the industry at large, post-event.
- 13:20-13:40 – Topic 1: Tech and experiential strategies for enhancing accessibility
- 14:00-14:20 – Topic 2: Use cases for Agentic AI in aviation
- 14:40-15:00 – Topic 3: Strategies to achieve end-to-end CX personalisation
Tech & Innovation Briefing - Baggage

Our popular Tech & Innovation Briefings on the exhibition floor allow attendees to join guided tours and meet exhibitors with relevant products, services and concepts to learn more about the subjects they are most interested in. You can expect briefings in 2025 around a variety of pertinent topics, each briefing subject is scheduled to succeed a related conference session.
FTE Global Opening Keynote Session


Daniel Coleman
Founder & Chairman
Future Travel Experience
From “Moonshots” to a “Space Program” in Enterprise Innovation: Making Growth Repeatable and Scalable
Most companies can pull off a “moonshot” project once, given all the pieces fall in the right place. But the key for long-term success is making innovation-led growth repeatable. This keynote explores what it takes to build a true “space program”: a system which consistently generates and scales, bold ideas that drive measurable growth.
Dan Toma is an innovation thought leader and the co-author of the award-winning book ‘The Corporate Startup’ (awarded ‘Management Book of the Year for Innovation and Entrepreneurship’ by Chartered Management Institute and The British Library in 2018) and Innovation Accounting. He started his career in entrepreneurship, being involved with technology startups across the world. Puzzled by the questions ‘why are innovative products mainly launched by startups?’, together with his team at the consultancy company OUTCOME, he focuses on enterprise innovation transformation. Specifically on the changes blue-chip organisations need to make to allow for new ventures to be built in a corporate setting. In this capacity he worked with companies like Deutsche Telekom, DNB, Jaguar Land Rover, Bayer, John Deere, ING & Allianz.
More speakers to be announced
FTE Global Happy Hour

Make the most of the vital networking opportunities provided at the FTE Global Happy Hour, where delegates can enjoy demonstrations in the exhibition and network with their peers over drinks.
Wednesday 10th September 2025
Registration Open
U.S. CBP Symposium

FTE Global 2025 will once more be complemented by a U.S. CBP workshop, at which experts from U.S. CBP and guest speakers will lead in-depth technical sessions in an interactive environment on a range of key topics.
Exhibition Hall Open
The Technology Leaders Conversation – What are the technologies, and underlying infrastructure and approaches needed, to drive real transformation in air transport?
Each speaker gets 5 minutes to present their tech deployment strategies before a fast-moving panel discussion.


Dr. Joe Leader
Group CEO
APEX/IFSA/FTE


Sagi Varghese
Managing Director, Airport Operations & CSD Technology
United Airlines


Aura Moore
CIO
Los Angeles World Airports


James Williamson
CEO
Veovo
More speakers to be announced soon!
- What are the technologies that will be most game-changing to air transport in the next 20 years?
- What new business models and revenue opportunities could air transport stakeholders open up by becoming truly digital-first businesses?
- How do you successfully embed AI within your organisation and what should be the end game for how it drives your business?
- How significant will quantum computing be to air transport?
- What should a modern tech stack look like and should we avoid layering technology on top of existing systems, or always integrate it as the engine for true business transformation?
- How much can new technologies & automation really impact efficiency and CX efforts, and how do you bring all these enablers together effectively instead of being siloed?
- What are the best data and foundational strategies to underpin digital transformation efforts?
Coffee Break on the exhibition floor
Tech & Innovation Briefing - Artificial Intelligence (AI), Machine Learning (ML) and Internet of Things (IoT)

The FTE AI Symposium – Part 1: Case studies on how organisations are putting AI to work across their businesses
What can the air transport industry learn from other sectors about effective AI implementation?


George Sammit
Staff Computer Scientist, Intelligent Systems
Southwest Research Institute
Crowdsourced Safety: What 4,400 Photos Can Teach AI (and us)


Jason Fogelman
Senior Director – Airport & Inflight Strategy & Ops Support
Spirit Airlines


Doug Kreuzkamp
Founder/CEO
Springshot


Mike Morin
VP of Business Development and Partnerships
webAI
Listen in on how CVG is going CLEAR with scalable, AI-enabled software for critical limits evaluation and alternative routing to maximise strategic growth and minimise bottlenecks.


Hannah Meredith
Senior Manager of Strategic Innovation
CVG Airport


Steve Cundy
Founder & CEO
Tuatara Consulting


Tom Driscoll
Director – Service Delivery
Tuatara Consulting
How is British Airways harnessing AI and other leading-edge technology to boost operational performance at London Heathrow – Europe’s busiest airport – to record levels?


Tom Moran
Director of Heathrow
British Airways
Innovation Keynote Round Table Breakout
Alternative Session Choice
Inside the innovation system: lifting the hood on what makes corporate innovation-led growth repeatable and scalable.


Dan Toma
Co-founder
OUTCOME
Join this roundtable if you want to double-click on what it really takes to make innovation-led growth a sustainable, repeatable process for your enterprise—one that runs on a system, not a group of superheroes. We’ll explore how leading brands have aligned their growth agendas with strategy, culture, leadership, and processes to build engines of continuous growth. Expect a candid, practical conversation about what works, what doesn’t, and how to build innovation that drives results.
Lunch and networking on the exhibition floor with exclusive launches and unveilings
Tech & Innovation Briefing - Security, Digital Identity & Biometrics

FTE Americas Innovate Awards Pitch Session - Startups & Vendors

Best New Transformative Concept
At the epicentre of this show is the region’s largest and most respected innovation competition. Industry stakeholders will pitch on-stage in an effort to impress our judges and audience, whose all-important votes will dictate who wins.
The format will be 5-minute pitch sessions by 6 Startups & Vendors for our shortlisted companies with quick-fire questions and comments from the judges on their transformative concept.
The FTE AI Symposium – Part 2: A deep-dive into Agentic AI and the move towards Artificial General Intelligence
Each speaker gets 5 minutes to share how they are exploring Agentic AI, their perspectives on how it can redefine automation, and how transformational the ultimate move towards Artificial General Intelligence will be, before a fast-moving panel discussion.


Teaque Lenahan
Managing Partner & Group VP
Publicis Sapient


Sree Samudrala
Director of Artificial Intelligence & Automation
Southwest Airlines


Kushal Pasari
Director of GenAI & ML Engineering
United Airlines


Stanislaw Schmal
Director Digital & AI
Lufthansa Industry Solutions
More speakers to be announced soon.
Sponsored by Publicis Sapient
Networking on the exhibition floor
Tech & Innovation Briefing - Accessibility - Autonomous wheelchairs & other exciting new technology & services to improve accessibility for all

Deep-dive digital transformation case studies: Tangible business cases of implementing digitisation strategies in various tech fields, with emphasis on data-driven insights and transparency regarding faced challenges


Ross Falconer
Head of Content
Future Travel Experience
How is Vancouver Airport Authority leveraging digital twins and AI to reimagine airport operations, and how is it partnering with other airports to co-develop intelligent solutions that shape the future of aviation?


Albert Van Veen
Vice President, Innovation and Chief Information Officer
Vancouver International Airport
How Schiphol is leveraging technology, design, and data: In-house developed intelligence that reduced passenger peaks by 22% and elevated airside efficiency and safety


Martijn van Boven
Product Manager
Schiphol Amsterdam Airport


Mohamed Talbi
Product Manager
Schiphol Amsterdam Airport
More speakers to be announced
Recommendations to forging and rolling-out effective AI strategies from the Airports AI Alliance members.
Alternative Session Choice
The Airports AI Alliance assists the aviation industry to deploy artificial intelligence solutions effectively and responsibly by bringing together C-suite airport leaders, who are committed to creating a roadmap for their organization. In this session Alliance members, will share their ideas and learnings from their own efforts in this space.


Oliver Hendry
Programme Director
Airports AI Alliance


Paul Puopolo
Executive Vice President of Innovation
Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport
More speakers to be announced
FTE Global Networking Party (featuring the FTE Global Awards Ceremony)

This year’s FTE Global Networking Party will take place at the Hotel Maya – a full-scale Latin American-inspired resort with a distinctive Southern California combination of spectacular, oceanfront views amidst 14 acres of lush, tropical gardens dotted with 500 palm trees in a modern, open-air setting. The event will be this year’s premier industry networking event, providing a perfect opportunity to unwind and network with fellow attendees in a relaxed environment.
It will also provide the perfect location for the industry-leading FTE Global Pioneer Awards ceremony sponsored by Assaia, which will recognise the world’s most pioneering airports and airlines with innovation projects prevalent across their entire organisations. Three airports and three airlines will be highly commended, while three more airports and airlines will receive FTE Global Pioneer Awards trophies. As part of the evening we will also recognise outstanding achievements among our FTE Americas Digital Transformation Power List nominees.
FTE Global Pioneer Awards sponsored by:
Thursday 11th September 2025
Morning Keynote
Pilot stories: What hard lessons have been learned – and what are the secrets to a successful innovation journey?
A fast-moving panel discussion where each speaker can share their innovation journey so far, including what worked, what didn’t, how to scale, and the strategies and technologies being implemented.


Kevin Kleist
Head of Emerging Trends
Southwest Airlines


Pablo Lopez Loeches
Head of Ideation & Entrepreneurship, Innovation & Customer Experience Directorate
Aena


Thomas Dworschak
Head of IT Digitalization & Innovation
Vienna Airport


Tom Cizauskas
Business Administration Manager
Gerald R. Ford International Airport Authority (GRR)


Christian George Kessler
Organizational Alignment and Strategic Innovation
Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority


Nicole Hodges-Austin
Innovation Program Manager
Alaska Airlines


Justin Kester
VP-Global Sales
Synaptic Aviation
- What are the most effective strategies for building teams to deliver an innovation journey? And what stakeholders is it important to partner with?
- What are the contracting and procurement hurdles faced by startups with the potential to contribute to an innovation journey and how can those challenges be met?
- How can you change established processes at an airport or airline to drive meaningful innovation?
- What did you have to do to make innovation adoption happen?
Networking Break on exhibition floor
FTE Americas Innovate Awards Pitch Session: “Most Innovative Airline & Airport Initiative” categories

At the epicentre of this show is the region’s largest and most respected innovation competition. Industry stakeholders will pitch on-stage in an effort to impress our judges and audience, whose all-important votes will dictate who wins.
The format will be 5-minute pitch sessions by 3 airlines and 3 airports for our shortlisted nominees with quick fire questions and comments from the judges.
Lunch and networking on the exhibition floor with exclusive launches and unveilings
Tech & Innovation Briefing - Robotics & Autonomous Vehicles

Post-lunch Keynote


Brian Sumers
Editor
The Airline Observer
Brian Sumers, an expert on the global airline industry, is editor of The Airline Observer, a newsletter covering the business of airlines, and a co-host of The Air Show, a podcast covering the business of the sky. Previously, Brian led aviation coverage for Skift, and was a regular contributor to Conde Nast Traveler and Aviation Week.
United Above & Beyond: Building the World’s Leading Airline from the Inside Out
In a powerful finale keynote conversation, United Airlines CEO Scott Kirby will share United’s ambitious mission to become the best airline in the world. From becoming the first major U.S. airline to offer free high-speed Starlink Wi-Fi to as of this year leading the world in IFE seat-back screens, United drives to set the highest standard for passenger experience. Kirby will offer an inside look at the strategy forging this incredible transformation, including the cultural and operational shifts that are rapidly accelerating the airline’s progress. This session will highlight how United’s investments in people, product, technology, and innovation will reshape the future of aviation from the inside out.
The FTE Robotics & Autonomous Vehicles Symposium
Case study presentations followed by a panel discussion.
What are the key findings & recommendations from the autonomous vehicle planning, prep & trials that Aribo has been involved in working with the likes of the GTAA, FAA, ATL, ACY, GRR and more?


Corey Clothier
Founder & CEO
Aribo & Global Automated Mobility Lead, Arcadis
What is the future autonomy vision of United Airlines journey now, and how much progress has been made with testing technology in the field?


Kristen Berndt
Senior Manager, Customer Strategy & Innovation
United Airlines
Insights and recommended practices from CVG on planning and scaling autonomous vehicle use at airports (Mapping, Testing, Modeling, Simulation, Testing, Deployment, Scaling. Rinse and repeat)


Brian Cobb
Chief Innovation Officer
Cincinnati / Northern Kentucky International Airport


Miles Garner
Director of Sales and Marketing
Aurrigo
FTE Global Closing Party (featuring the FTE Americas Innovate Awards Ceremony)

Make the most of the vital networking opportunities provided at the FTE Global Closing Party, which provides a final opportunity to spend some quality time on the show floor with a fun social twist thanks to our exhibitors who will be hosting drinks receptions, prize draw giveaways and unveilings. The FTE Global Closing Party will also provide the perfect location to reveal the winners of the FTE Americas Innovate Awards. During the previous two days audience members will have heard from industry stakeholders, each pitching on stage in an effort to impress our judges and their fellow aviation colleagues. Join us as we see the region’s largest and most respected innovation competition come to a close. The all-important audience votes will be tallied, and we will announce and celebrate the FTE Americas Innovate Awards winners.
Why attend FTE Global?
Don’t just take our word for it – read what FTE Global attendees have said about the show…
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Vital Event Information
Future Travel Experience Global 2025 is a global forum that brings together airlines, airports, government agencies, vendors, start-ups, terminal designers, architects, ground handlers, destination partners and various other travel industry stakeholders to learn, collaborate and be inspired on their next moves to transform their organisations’ passenger experience, business performance & sustainability strategies.
- Event
- Future Travel Experience Global 2025
- Date
- to September 2025
- Location
- Long Beach Convention Center, California, United States
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